Ice-chest alarm



' F. FORTIER.

ICE CHEST ALARM. APPLICATION FILED JULY 9,1921.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

INVENTQR.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FERDINAND EoR'rIER, or MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

ICE-CHEST ALARM.

Application filed July 9,

T 0 all whom 1'7? may concern.

Be it known that I, FERDINAND F ou'rinn, a citizen of Canada, residing at Manchester, in the county of Hillsborough and State of New Hampshire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ice-Chest Alarms, of which the followingis a speciiication.

This invention relates to alarms intended to give warning when the drip water in the pan generally used underneath an ice chest has reached such a point near the top that the pan should be emptied.

Its advantages are that it provides a mechanically operated alarm bell which will ring for a very considerable period, or until the pan has been emptied, which is simple in operation and which is connected with a float in such a manner that it is not easily injured. Another advantage is that there are no attachments to the pan, which may be of any usual type, and the device is so arranged that when the pan is removed and replaced the parts are not readily interfered with and automatlcally resume their appropriate positions.

Fig. 3 is a detail of the universal pivot for the float rocker.

Fig. 4 is a detail of the short or back end of the float rocker arm which engages the tip lever.

Fig. 5 is a detail showing the adjustment of the float on the hanger rod.

Fig. 6 is a detail, enlarged front elevation, of the retarding spring.

Fig. 7 is a section on line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

In the drawings, A represents the body of an ice chest having legs C, which rest upon the floor D, and finishing boards B which come down on the sides between the front and back legs. p

F represents the drip pipe and. E a drip pan which rests on the floor D and which may be of any well known form.

My device as a whole is indicated by H,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

1921. Serial No. 483,604.

andpomprises a fastening plate 10 to which at right angles fixed a bracket arm 19 in any convenient way. These can be attached to finishing board B by means of screws 0. 9, and to the bottom part of chest A by means of a screw, such as 8, by all such screws or any of them. An advantage of my device is that it can thereby be readily attached to and detached from any ordinary ice chest.

11 is the part of the alarm device which contains clockwork which can be wound up by means of a key 12 and which includes a hammer 13 having a rounded head 14.. both being normally adapted to vibrate unless held out of action. 15 is a hell or similar device in operative relation with hammer head 14 whereby, unless the hammer is held out of action, the bell will be sounded.

Underneath bracket arm 19, I pivot with. a loose or universal pivot at 22 a float rocker, indicated by K, having a short arm 20 and long arm 21, respectively on opposite sides of pivot Long arm 21 passes hrough a guide 23 which allows it to move up and down but not sideways. and is then bent down forming a hanger rod 2 1 which depends from one end of rocker K and carries a float. shown as a wooden ball 25.

Preferably, the position of this float 25, as shown in Fig. 5, can be adjusted by means of a spring 26which can engage any of the various notches 27 of rod 24. V

The float rocker K passes loosely through a hole 28 in pivot 22 whereby it is allowed to rock and may also revolve.

The end of short arm 20 passes into a loop 32 on one end of a tip lever pivoted at 33 to the side of plate 10 and has at its other end a finger 34 which is in such position that when depressed it will so engage hammer head 14 as to keep it from vibrating. When this finger 3a is lifted by depressing the end 32, which occurs when short arm 20 is depressed as the float 25 rises, the hammer is released and the alarm sounds.

By having the float rocker pivoted vertically and adapted to revolve, the hanger rod 24. and float 25 can swing freely when the pan E is taken out or replaced, as shown in the dotted lines in Fig. 2, and will also function properly when the water level rises from the low point shown at 50 to a point higher up, shown at 51 in Fig. 1, carrying up float 25 as shown in the dotted lines.

I prefer to use a retarding or centering spring, shown at 27, which should have sufficient strength to prevent the hanger rod :24; from pivoting when float 25 is litted by the Water, as shown in Fig. 1, but not sulliciently strong to prevent the rod 24- from swinging out of the way when pan E is removed;

I show such a spring :27 which is attached under bracket arm 19 and has a flatsurit'ace which engages a cut-away flat surface 29 on short arm 20.

It is clear that if the strength of the spring is properly adjusted, it will retard the rocking of the float rocker member but will not prevent it from rocking it sufficient force is applied.

I claim:

1. The combination with a fastening plate adapted to be attached underneath an ice chest, and having a bracket arm fixed thereto, of an alarm device attached to said plate. such device having a hammer with a rounded head adapted to vibrate unless hold out of action, a float rocker so pivoted to the bracket arm that it can rock vertically and can also revolve and having a short arm and a long arm, a float hanger rod which depends 'l' lOlll said long arm, a float adjustable on said hanger rod, and a pivoted tip lever having one end in engagement with the rocker and the other end 111 such engagement with the hammer head as to normally hold it out of action.

2. The combination with a fastening plate adapted to be attached underneath an ice chest, and having a bracket arm fixed thereto, of an alarm device attached to said plate, such device having a hammer with a head adapted to vibrate unless held out of action, a float rocker so pivoted to the bracket arm that it can rock vertically and having a short arm and a long arm, a float hanger rod which depends from said long ar1n,"a float chest, and having a bracket arm fixed thereto, of an alarm device attached to said plate such device having a hammer with a head adapted to vibrate unless held out of action, a float rocker so pivoted to the bracket arm that it can rock vertically. float hanger rod which depends from said rocker. a float adjustable on said hanger rod, and a pivoted tip lever in engagement with the rocker and in such engagement with the hammer head as to normally hold it out ot action.

4:. The combination with an ice chest, of an alarm device having hammer adapted to vibrate unless held out of action, a float rocker so pivoted that can rock, a float hanger rod which depends from one end of the float rocker, a float on said hanger rod, and a pivoted tip lever in engagement with the float rocker and in such engagement with the hammer asto normally hold it out of action.

5. The combination with an ice chest, olan alarm device having a hammer adapted to vibrate unless held out of action, float rocker so pivoted that it can rock, a spring in such engagement therewith as to retard the rocking of the float rocker, a float hanger rod which depends from one end of the float rocker, a float on said hanger rod, and a pivoted tip lever in engagement with the float rocker and in such engagement with the hammer as to normally hold it out of action.

FERDINAND roarmn. 

